Note: Hello everyone!!! I have to confess that the following chapter is my favorite so far. I hope it will become yours. Brace yourselves, because something huge is happening at the end! Thanks once more for your support! I am excited to read your comments for this special chapter and the song I chose. To my mind, this song suited most! This chapter is dedicated to the one and only @buyenyengcurl! Thanks for the support and advice!
8.Meet the monsters
"I have named you queen.
There are taller than you, taller.
There are purer than you, purer.
There are lovelier than you, lovelier.
But you are the queen"
La Reina (The Queen), Pablo Neruda
One month later....
The ball held by the Charity Association for the Children Rights was a total success for a fifth consecutive year. Most of the high society members were gathered in the huge throne room of the Redmondian palace, with their checkbooks in hand, totally antagonistic. The aristocrat who would make the most generous donation would boast about his achievement for a whole year.
Their flashy smiles, their flamboyant gowns, and their gaudy jewelry were far away from the world they were supposed to support. Impoverished children, dying of famine and diseases, innocent victims in the hands of slavers and twisted panderers had nothing to do with them. For the aristocrats, the opulent entrepreneurs and the indolent ladies, that event was just another opportunity to demonstrate their wealth, while for the others, the less privileged. Some of them were totally unaware of the reason they were attending this ball. They were simply present those balls were always a good opportunity for good food, for self-promotion and for gossiping.
With these thoughts in her mind, Roselyn was looking impassively at a man who was sitting beside her and was boasting about his many trips in North Africa and the Middle East, while he was drinking the fifth glass of wine.
It has been more than two months since her arrival, and she was more productive than ever. She was working around the clock, meeting people, attending business events and preparing for the throne by protocol rules and countless laws or regulations.
Alexander had proven to be a very cooperative partner. Lately, he was attending as many meetings as possible and seemed more interested in state matters than before. He wasn't always that punctual, but he was making extraordinary progress. Sometimes, he wasn't showing up at all at meetings, and she had to come down with excuses to cover him. When he was reappearing, he was inventing some pretty lame excuses about his absence. But when he was there, he was a true leader; Convincing and persuasive, he was making the other affiliates succumb to the palace's demands only by a glance or by the alluring tone of his voice.
But his rascal behavior didn't mind her at all because the old rivalry was gone by far. He was talking to her and he seemed to enjoy her presence. He was always chatting with her, winking at her or even having meals with her. Her heart was filled with many positive feelings, but she was trying to remain in balance. He was only a working partner and nothing more. He was attentive and kind, but she couldn't forget her role . Everyone could notice that they were a very productive team together.
"May I steal the future queen for a while, gentlemen?" she froze as she felt his warm hand circling her waist while beaming a dashing grin to the companion of dukes and earls around the table. He kept on grinning conspiratorially, while he was dragging her away from those boring people, especially from that George Burdon who was wooing her repeatedly.
Roselyn gave him a side glance. That night he was more handsome than ever in his black shiny tuxedo. The small black bow was making him look even more attractive.
"You saved me! One more minute and I would die of boredom!"
"I noticed. Come! I want to introduce you to some people. They are my closest friends. They want to meet you, and they asked me to introduce you."
He pointed at a bunch of people, who were forming a circle at the other side of the room. She glared reluctantly at the party of men and women. They were like some upper-class debutantes, very groomed and sophisticated. They seemed very bonded and affectionate between each other. The prince informed her that all of them were descendants of the most powerful families of Redmond.
"Just a few things you have to know before meeting them. Samuel is gay and the other girl back there is fighting bulimia. Oh, and by any means, don't mention that Jade is your best friend. The best thing that can happen to you afterward is decapitation."
It was some kind of his usual black humor, but she felt some ominous butterflies in her stomach. She searched the couple, Philip, and Jade, and found them across the room chatting lively with some gentlemen. Jade was now living and working permanently in the palace, as an assistant to Mr. Hudson. Although they were trying to keep a low profile, they were photographed by paparazzi, so Philip confirmed the relationship. They looked so exuberant and happy together.
"Ok, but why?" she blinked in confusion.
"Well, one girl among them, Ivy, was somehow betrothed to Philip. To be specific, it was a matchmaking decided by their parents. It would be a strong union between their companies. Philip of course, denied and the whole thing didn't proceed. It's been ages since those times, but she still chases him."
"I can't believe that these things still happen in our days!"
"Apparently," he frowned. ""Those arranged relationships are doomed to fail."
The smile returned to his face when they approached his friends. Roselyn's heart was pounding, as she noticed that they were examining her thoroughly from top to bottom.
"Guys, this is Roselyn, our princess. Rose, this is Max, Samuel, Ivy, Violet and here are Markus and Angelique."
Everyone bowed formally, and she had the chance to take a better glimpse of them. Max was tall, well built, with bright green eyes. Samuel was a skinny guy with a dashing smile, while Markus, who happened to be Violet's boyfriend, looked more serious and composed.
The women looked absolutely flawless. Violet was tall, with perfect brown curls circling her emerald eyes, as was wearing a long light blue silky gown. Ivy, on the other hand, was shorter but very toned and had blond curls around her face, while her neck was covered by shiny jewelry. She looked like a Victoria secret model, but stiffer and more contemptuous. The only one who smiling genuinely to her was the plump red-haired that was sat indolently on a couch. She was Angelique, and she belonged to the royal family. She and the prince were second cousins.
The first one who started talking was Ivy. Her voice was strong and confident, as she approached the prince and pinched his cheek playfully.
"Alexander, I've spoken to Helena earlier. She's in Barcelona, and she will return to Monaco this week. Have you talked to her recently?"
"Not really," he murmured nonchalantly and his grip around Rose's waist became tighter like she was a possession. He searched her eyes and she smiled at him reassuringly. Those were his friends. She had to make a stellar impression, although it seemed utterly impossible.
"Helena is our friend," the blond woman explained to Roselyn scornfully, while Alexander didn't seem to enjoy this conversation. "You must have seen her at your coronation dance, last month. She is a cosmopolitan one, so she's traveling around the globe."
Of course, she remembered the posh golden girl, with whom the prince was dancing the whole night. He had presented her as his date, although he had confessed that they were just friends.
"The girl knows how to party!" Samuel's exuberant voice echoed in the background. "Last summer she invited us to Ibiza and Saint Tropez! It was amazing! Markus was swimming in the hotel pool naked and Alex, Ivy, and Helena stole his swimsuit, so he reached the 27th floor dressed as a hotel groom."
"Man, I paid him five thousand to get him out of his clothes."
All started laughing hard, while the princess remained inexpressive and tried to understand their jokes. The narration was resumed by Angelique, who was simultaneously yawning.
"And we are banned from all the European Four Seasons hotels! We've booked both the royal and Presidential Suites in Firenze for our graduation from college, and we were partying there for a couple of days. When we party, we raise hell!"
"We should go there again," Markus suggested and Alexander immediately protested.
"I would be king in a few months! Imagine pictures of me kicked out of Four Seasons in a state of a hangover once again. My father would hang me in the main square of Densmore for that."
Hudson, who appeared out of nowhere, interrupted the joyful atmosphere.
"Sir, your father wants to introduce you to the Sheikh of Qatar. Please, follow me."
He disappeared with Hudson and abandoned her alone with them. Suddenly, their faces were transformed, as if Alexander was her safety net. They were looking at her poisonously like she was an intruder. They were eyeing her with disdain and only the red-haired was glaring at her with sympathy, pity even.
"So, Your Highness," Samuel asked with the same grin again, which made you wonder if it was from excitement or from irony. "Who designed your dress?"
She hesitated and looked at her own gown, which looked way too simple comparing to their lavish clothing. It was a long sleeveless lacy black dress matched only with a pair of golden drop earrings, her father's present for her birthday. She was sure her ladies-in-waiting mentioned the name earlier, but her attention was focused on the fiscal measures that had to be taken at the end of this month.
"Is it Dolce & Gabbana?" Violet asked and glared towards Ivy with an ironic smile on her lips.
Roselyn's heart was skipping a bit. Her stomach was tied in a knot. If only she had remembered the name.
"I think it's a local one," she vociferated.
"That's obvious," Ivy replied and puckered her lips up like a duck, while everyone started laughing again. "Redmond has no talented designers."
They were insulting her in front of her eyes, and she stood there speechless and motionless, waiting their next attack with a knot in her throat. And it came...
"I read somewhere that you used to live in New York," Max, the most handsome of them and serious noted. "What were you doing there?"
"I was working," she answered back, but her reply but her reply caused a terrible turmoil between the friends.
"Working?" Violet asked in disgust like that was so humiliating.
"I suppose in one of your father's companies," the man continued. "The Gifford Consolidated is proliferating."
"No. I was working in a law firm. I never receive money from my parents."
***
Alexander took a nervous glimpse at his watch. Since her mother, Mrs. Gifford, noticed her absence first, he turned the world upside down. He had searched her in the entire ballroom, in her personal room and in all the first floor, but she was nowhere to be found. Jade and Phillip were clueless. Angelique and Samuel were the last who had seen her, but none of them was aware where she might have gone. He had a bad hunch aware that his friends weren't exactly the kindest people.
While he was ascending on the second floor, he noticed that the library door was half open. He rushed there and emerged in. The strong smell of old books immediately tingled his nose. This wasn't the main palace library, but a private room where his grandfather had gathered his favorite historical and literature collections all in glass display cabinets. The room was considerably small, cozy and elegant.
The balcony door was open. He called her name and, after a couple of seconds she appeared in front of him, with her slender arms folded on her chest. Her eyes looked gloomy and serious, and there were strands of hair falling around her face. He sighed in relief as she came inside.
"Hey! Why have you left the party?" he asked her softly, his sparkling eyes inquiring.
She shrugged and closed the balcony door behind her, weighing his words.
"I was watching the view. It was too crowded downstairs."
This room had the most spectacular view, especially at night. You could see the river which was dividing the city into two large sectors and its lights that were sparkling and glowing. That combination was magical and breathtaking.
"Well, when I was a child, my grandfather used to read to me a lot. When I grew up, I wasn't quite a reader but I used to come here for the view and the smell of books. Oh! Wait a minute."
He took his cellphone out of his pocket, touched the screen and waited, with his eyes not leaving hers.
"Hudson," he said. "The princess is with me. Inform Mrs. Gifford."
He hung up and placed his phone and keys on the round table on his left side. He was not sure if he was allowed to come closer, so he dipped his fingers in the velvet fabric of one of the armchairs.
"They were looking for you," he mentioned in a serious tone and then, he pulled the curtains so that they could enjoy the picturesque view.
"I apologize for distracting you from the ball. I just wanted some privacy."
She looked upset, agitated and even tired, but her face hadn't lost its usual sparkle. Alexander's heart beat louder, but those symptoms made him feel unsettled. He didn't want her to feel hurt.
"Rose, what happened?"
She gave no reply. To say what? That his best friends insulted her so shamelessly? That the impudent way they were examining her reminded her his own attitude at the beginning of her habitation in the palace? Now it had dawned on her. For everyone, but mostly for him, she was an intruder, an outcast.
She turned her back to him, to hide her glistening eyes. The last thing she wanted was to burst into tears in front of him. She felt him approaching. His palms were now touching her bare shoulders.
" Tell me," he repeated again softly. "I'm worried now."
They were closer than it was even permitted. She could feel his warm breath on her back. She could feel his warm breath on the nape of her neck, burning her, clouding her thoughts, provoking her. Everything and everyone was shouting at her to leave. Redmond was a lethal place. But it was his presence that was urging her to stay. It was that heartbeat that was pulsating insanely.
"Who was it? Ivy or Markus? I shouldn't have left you alone with these jerks. What did they say?"
Still, there was no answer.
"Tell me, for God's sake! Otherwise, I'll drag you downstairs in front of everyone, and they will regret the moment they opened their mouths. Believe me, you haven't seen me mad."
"Alexander, don't... I beg you. It was nothing."
She turned to his side, but without facing him, but without being able to face those magnetic eyes. She was literally in his embrace now, feeling his grip tighter.
"The hell it was. You are disrespected by people who belong to my inner circle. Firstly, it was my mother, then my father and his irrational demands, and now them. I feel ashamed on their behalf."
"Maybe their behavior is justified. Maybe they see something more after all. Sometimes, many times, I feel that I do not fit into your world. The decision was wrong in the first place, and there is still time to change it. I'm leaving Redmond, Alexander, before it's too late."
She lowered her eyes again, avoiding eye contact. Alexander touched her chin with his long fingers and lifted it up, so her dark eyes met his blue ones. She could tell he was surprised and bewildered at the same time.
"Don't say that ever again," he uttered with a hoarse voice. "Ever. If they think you don't belong here, they should adapt their worldview, not the opposite. I understand that their –and also my- way of life is very eccentric, but this doesn't mean that they have the right to disrespect you. You are their queen, and you are marvelous."
Alexander was really aggravated. He leaned closer and placed his forehead on hers, staring deeply in her eyes, holding her head inside his palms.
"Above and beyond, what am I going to do without you? You are valuable to me. I need to have you here. "
All of a sudden, their lips were sealed. At the beginning, it was a tender brush between hesitant lips traveling to unknown paths, which soon became more ardent. His left arm was now around her waist, while the other was caressing her shoulder. As soon as the kiss deepened, and their tongues started stroking each other, he pulled her even closer to his firm body, trapped by the carnivorous passion. Her hands were on his golden hair and later, they fell on his cheeks, feeling the roughness of his stubble.
He broke their intimate kiss first, but with slightly open eyes, he leaned closer again, demanding another lingering session. This time, she stepped backward, bringing them back to reality. They were staring each other for a couple of seconds, completely stunned. She was gaping and touching her own lips.
"Oh God," she whispered breathlessly.
His chest was moving up and down, his eyes were huge from anticipation and excitement, and his breathing was harsh. He tried to say something, but he seemed more surprised than she was.
The princess couldn't stay longer. With a brisk step, she exited the room abandoning him all alone.